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Captain Harold A Ogden USAAF 359/360/361 Fighter Squadrons 356th Fighter Group HQ - 8th US Air Force ‘Hal’ Ogden was born in Clearfield, Pennsylvania on the 25th April 1919, one of nine children born to Newton Archer and Cora Mark Ogden. He spent his boyhood on a farm and attended Clearfield High School, forming an early interest in flying. At the age of nine he walked five miles to see a ‘barnstorming flying circus’ and it was here that he took his first ride in an aeroplane. By the age of just 16 years he formed a co-operative with nine partners and purchased a Curtis Challenger aircraft for $500 and formed a flying club. Hal extended his experience by also flying other aircraft such as an Alexander Eaglerock and a Waco 10. At the age of 18 he had made his mind up to join the military, and enlisted in the Army Air Corps at Langley Field, Virginia, (named after the early air pioneer Samuel Pierpont Langley). In 1938 Harold Ogden received an appointment to West Point Academy from Congressman Don Gingery, a democrat who also lived in Clearfield. As a cadet, Hal was given the nickname of ‘Og’ and quickly attained the rank of first sergeant. He became a member of the Ski Club, and participated in football and track teams, keeping up his interest in flying by joining the Model Airplane Club. His entry in the West Point ‘Howitzer’ states:- Og came to us with plenty of Army experience to make his place in the Corps. Enthusiastic over flying, his ambitions were to become a great pilot. He rarely passed a drag-less week-end though a regular member of the red-comforter squad. He was a close friend of the Tactical Department, a real man to know, a fine and loyal roommate, and one who has finished his four years at West Point with colours high and handsome. A day after his graduation in 1942 Hal married his childhood sweetheart, Lenore ‘ Nonnie’ Whelan, and was then posted to flight school at Corsicana, Texas, training on the tandem seating open cockpit, Fairchild PT-19 aircraft. More training followed in the Vultee BT-13 basic trainer at Randolph Field, and on to Moore Field where he flew the North American AT-6 (Harvard), which was faster and heavier, having a variable pitch propeller, landing flaps and a two way radio installed. This was followed by time on the Curtiss P36 Hawk and P 40 War Hawk (Known as the Kittyhawk by the RAF) and finally, the aircraft he would gain all his combat experience in, the P 47 Thunderbolt. Promoted to 1St Lieutenant, Ogden was then sent on a course of Applied Flying Tactics at Orlando Army Air Base Florida, again flying the Curtis P-40. In April 1943, Hal Ogden was finally posted to the 356th Fighter Group as a flight commander, and then assistant command group S-3 (principal assistant to the commander in planning and co- ordination of brigade operations). Just prior to being sent overseas, Harold Ogden went on to Mitchell Field, Long Island for further advanced training with the Thunderbolt P-47. It was here that he became a member of the exclusive Caterpillar Club by having to bale out and use his parachute over Long Island Sound as a result of engine failure with the P47. He landed in the middle of the Sound and had to swim for four hours to reach the shore. By August 1943, the 356th Fighter Group were gearing up, ready for a posting to the Western European Theatre. The 356th Fighter Group( ‘Hell Hawks’ ) entered the European Theatre of Operations on the15th October 1943, flying P-47 Thunderbolts and later switching to P-51 Mustangs, dispatching its aircraft on 407 missions before it’s final one on 7th May 1945. It was credited with destroying 277 enemy aircraft, probably destroying 23 more and damaging 192. Because the principle of bomber escort was strictly adhered to by the 356th’s leaders, pilots of the group often had to pass up opportunities to engage enemy fighters and increase their personal scores. This fact helped earn the 356th a reputation of being a ‘ hard luck’ outfit due to their low victory to loss ratio, the gratitude and praise from the bomber crews more than offset this misnomer. They were indeed entitled more than any other group to the nickname, ‘Little Friends’. The 356th Fighter Group was formally constituted on December 8th 1942, and began to take shape in the new year, as the 359th, 360th and 361st Fighter Squadrons were activated on the 7th January 1943. Beginning on March 9th HQ staff, the 359th and 360th moved to Trumbull Field, whilst the 361st flew out from New Haven Army Base, Connecticut. P-47 B Thunderbolts were assigned to the group and the next few months were taken up with lectures on high altitude flying, aircraft identification, formation flying and gunnery practice, aerobatics, navigation, and Link Training. The group’s final phase of training began on July 4th at Grenier Airfield, New Hampshire where the pilots undertook instrument and cross-country flights. On August 13th the pilots flew their Thunderbolts to Newark, New Jersey in preparation for overseas postings. 1stLieutenant Harold Ogden had been attached to HQ Staff since March 1943, and on September 5th 1943 he, along with the other pilots boarded ‘HMS Orion’ bound for Glasgow, Scotland, arriving ten days later. By October 9th the 356th’s permanent home would be F-369, Martlesham Heath Airfield, Suffolk with the 359th and 360th pilots occupying Kesgrave Hall and Playford Hall respectively, whilst the 361st pilots would take up residence on the base itself. Harold Ogden was immediately assigned as ‘Assistant Ops HQ’ and would eventually complete a nine month ‘tour’ flying 90 missions over Europe with all three of the fighter squadrons, on many occasions leading them. His regular aircraft was a P-47D OC-U which he gave the personalised name of “Eager Eagle”. Flying this aircraft he would share in the destruction of a FW190 and damage two Me109’s in air combat, whilst accounting for three aircraft destroyed on the ground and three probably destroyed, with many trains, tugs, barges, and other forms of transport and buildings destroyed. On the 28th October 1943 Ogden was posted to Course No 37 of the Central Gunnery School at Sutton Bridge in the UK. He was given an RAF flying log-book (Form 414) to record his flying on this course which he decided to keep and record all his subsequent flights/missions whilst with the 356th Fighter Group. The course involved flying Spitfire Mk II’s practising quarter and astern attacks with air firing at drogues and evasion tactics, and perfecting flying skills. At the conclusion of the course his log- book was endorsed by a former Battle of Britain pilot, Wing Commander Archie Winskill KCVO CBE DFC* who assessed him ‘Above Average’ A course photo was given to all the students who each signed the back of it, Ogden sticking his in his log-book. The other pilots on this course were:- Flt Lt Rudd DFC, Flt Lt Smik DFC (Czech), Flt Lt Wellum DFC, Flt Lt Phillips DFC (Australian), F/O Erasmus DFC (Rhodesian), Flt Lt Lawrence DFC, S/L Wenham, S/L Gatward DSO DFC, Flt Lt McGowan and Lt McAlpine (FAA). **Both Flt Lt Lawrence and Flt Lt Wellum (also former Battle of Britain pilots), confirmed in September 2007 that Ogden was a very able and skilful pilot who must have amassed many hours flying before attending this intensive course. With reference to the war diary of the 356th Fighter Group and Captain Ogden’s flying log-book, the following give details of the missions he flew on, as shown in his logbook. After completing his Gunnery Course, he re-joined the 356th and was promoted to Captain. Unless stated otherwise, he always flew with the 359th Fighter Squadron (known unofficially as part of Zemke’s Wolfpack ) using P-47D-2 (Thunderbolt) 222517-OC-U named ‘Eager Eagle’ on the majority of these missions. This Thunderbolt had over 400 hrs operational flying during nine months that Ogden flew it, still retaining its original engine when relegated to training in August 1944. This entailed flying over some 100,000 miles over Western Europe by Captain Ogden, with Staff Sergeant Frank J Williams its crew chief, being responsible for maintaining this aircraft. Because of its shape likened to a milk-bottle, the P-47 became known as the ‘Juggernaut’ which was shortened to ‘Jug’, which became its colloquial term. ** The first-line life of a fighter aircraft in the 8th Air Force averaged about 120 days during 1944, with a chance of being written off in an accident or due to damage equal to that of going down through enemy action. The words highlighted in italics in the following narrative show the entries made by Ogden in his flying log-book December 5th 1943 Escort B-17’s to Paris Lt Col Coen led a withdrawal support from 1040 to 1302. Aircraft made landfall at 1123 near Le Treport and R/V’d at 1155 in the Rambouillet area. The 360th spotted seven Me110’s but they turned away before being attacked. December 11th 1943 Escort B-17’s to Emden Lt Col Coen led a withdrawal support from 1100 to 1400. R/V was accomplished SW of Groningen at 1250. The bombers were left in mid Channel at 1316, a pair of FW 190’s were seen by the 360th and two Me 110’s were sighted by the 359th but no contact was made.

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